The third-seeded Thai duo defeated top seeds Jeong Na-eun and Kim Hye-jeong 22-20, 21-15, a day after a straight-sets win over the same pair in the final women’s doubles group stage match at the US$1.5-million season-ending tournament. The two-time defending champions on Saturday evening defeated Rinov Rivaldy and Pitha Haningtyas Mentari of Indonesia 24-22, 16-21, 21-14. In the women’s singles, world champion Akane Yamaguchi of Japan booked her ticket to the last stage, crushing Olympic gold medallist Chen Yufei. The semi-final on Saturday was a rematch of Thursday’s group stage encounter when Chen beat Yamaguchi in straight sets. The Dane will face Indonesia’s Anthony Ginting, who defeated Jonatan Christie, in Sunday’s championship match.
